Cow crossing consents urged

Farmers in the Manawatu District should ensure they have the necessary consent to move dairy cows across the district’s highways and roads for milking.

Monitoring and Enforcement Officer, Julie Mahon, said the consents aimed to promote the safety of road users at stock crossing points and to reduce effluent on the road.

About 30 properties have been consented since the dairy herd crossing bylaw was introduced in 2003, with some stock managers conducting up to 10 crossings per week during the milking season.

Council staff is currently undertaking an annual inspection of crossing sites.

Ms Mahon said warning signs and safety vests were among the compulsory items required when the cows were moved, with orange road cones and flashing lights other safety options.

Farmers also needed to clean the road of any effluent after each crossing to remove any slippery surface problem and the possible undermining of the road.

“It is important for council to make people aware that if they are crossing cows on the road they do need consent and to ensure they are meeting the consent’s standard conditions,” said Ms Mahon.

She said one noticeable problem was farmers tending to leave their permanent, fold-down warning signs open all day – meaning motorists using that particular road were getting blase about the situation.

“Most of the farmers are doing a good job when it comes to the crossings, but there is an ongoing need to keep alerting people to their responsibilities.”

Ms Mahon said stock underpasses were a good option for sites that involved a busy road or large herd, as the animals became less stressed and would walk down a race without being supervised.

Costs could be prohibitive, but council offered a financial incentive of $2200 towards the cost of any installation.

Pamphlets on cow crossings and consents are freely available at the council office in Feilding.